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Topic: What other lenses for my 60D (Read 10701 times)

I highly recommend the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS, if your budget allows. If you haven't seen them, the Canon 17-55mm and the Tamron lenses have some detailed commentary HERE.

I'll second that - I owned that lens back when I still had my 7D and it performed very good! In my opinion, it should deserve the "L", but L's unfortunately are limited to full frame lenses. Dust got sucked in, but besides of that it simply was great!

Besides that, your 60D is not capable of AFMA (at least afaik, could be wrong on that) so I'd be careful with 3rd party lenses.

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"The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera." - Dorothea Lange

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For the most part, I am either thinking the Canon 17-55mm f2.8 or the new Sigma 30mm f1.4. I wouldn't mind a good fixed prime lens that is not extremely narrow.

I would like to see how much better they are than my current lenses, but will probably have to find out on my own when I get my next lens. I am leaning towards the Sigma since it's cheaper and the 18-135 is already my zoom lens, but image quality should improve greatly with the 17-55mm.

Based on this review, the new Sigma 30mm f1.4 has many improvements over the previous version, but is still rough around the edges at f1.4. Low light photography is a major point on what I buy next. I try to avoid using flashes generally.

I own both the 60D and the 7D. Best two lenses for these bodies are the 17-55 f2.8 IS and the 70-200 f2.8L IS II. Of course, this all depends upon what you shoot. Of the three that you suggest, I highly recommend the 17-55 f2.8.

So, what if you move to FF? If you're considering such a move soon, then consider the 6D with the 24-105 f4. This is the "FF counterpart" to the 60D and 17-55 f2.8, only better -- better low light, better color, greater focal range.

(FWIW I recently added a 5D3 with the 24-105 to my kit. I don't regret having the 17-55 that can only be used on the crop bodies, it makes a good backup system to my 5D3 if I need it. It also makes a good system for my daughter and potential apprentice who's interest in photography is growing. More importantly, for the past year that I've owned the 17-55, I got images that would not have recorded with a slower lens.)

The 24-105 is often a great buy as a kit, anywhere from $200-300 less than buying it solo. Buy it now and you'll spend a few hundred extra in preparation for the move to FF.

So if you plan to use the 60D for a while, then get a lens that works well with the 60D, you'll get more use out of the 60D. The 24-105 is a good lens on the 60D/7D, if you don't need the wide end and always shoot in lots of light. But, the extra stop of the 17-55 is big asset. If you move to FF, you can sell the 17-55. Sure, you may lose some money in the process, but it should be a near wash compared to the higher cost of the 24-105 solo (assuming this is your lens of choice for FF).

I would say Tamron 17-50VC, I was a silly little duck and went with the 17-40L instead though I have used them both quite heavily. I am considering upgrading to the 16-35L here in the next few months, but I know the Tam Tam still does well on a cropped frame cam cam. Wow, it's getting late, but for you over in Paris, I assume it's sunshine and roses. I'm just blabbering now...

Have fun in Paris while I have fun in OKLAHOMA!!! Woo hoo!!! I hope to visit one day. Have a good night/morning, Julien.

If this is typical, looking at your lens settings, I'd say the 30 mm will not be wide enough.

Also, I'm not sure how beneficial a fast aperture will be for those shots as you will be sacrificing depth of field.

Are you shooting handheld? Personally I would use a tripod for those shots but given the environment you may not be willing to carry a tripod. A monopod is a great option for such situations.

It all depends on the look you are after, but for that type of shooting I would want a long exposure, long enough to require a tripod. For some, HDR would be ideal (again, depends on what you are after). I don't know the screen name, but there is someone on here that shoots incredible HDRs of old buildings like that hotel, but they are out west somewhere.

If you are shooting handheld, then probably the Canon 17-55 f2.8 IS. You definitely want IS if you will be shooting handheld. The 2.8 might still get you enough depth of field and will buy a little over a slower lens. If you are shooting on a tripod then the fast lens and IS don't mean as much.

Also, the slow focusing in low light shouldn't be much of an issue with architecture as you can manually focus it since they are static objects.

Another thought is that I don't think the Sigma 30 mm is stabilized and most of your exposures were below 1/50 sec meaning you would need a tripod (or monopod).

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Noted. Everyone seems to be pushing me towards the 17-55mm f2.8. I am trying to find it gently used for around $800 or less. I know the refurbished one is $868 shipped currently, and new its $1060. Been trying to find a deal for a while. I really want the 17-55mm for general use and the 30mm for shooting detailed objects (50mm is just too small a window), but it sounds like I could do both easier with the 17-55mm. Both are on my list, but I will see what I can find as far as a good deal goes. I also want to get something quickly so I can go exploring some more with an upgrade.

On my pictures, I was using a tripod for quite a few of the shots, but not everything. I need to get a better one than the old one I found in storage. I hope I didn't piss off the ghosts in the baker hotel after clunking that thing around exiting down the dark stairwell.

The 70-200mm f2.8 is out of my league anytime soon. I would get a full frame before that one. The 15-85mm seems like a much better upgrade than the 18-135 f3.5-5.6, but can be covered with the range I have for now. No clue which full frame I would get yet, but that's another issue for another time.

I also would shoot some concert photos occasionally, which the 17-55mm f2.8 should be good with. I tend to take all sorts of pictures, but want a good setup for urban exploration.